Recent reviews by Valid

Genuinely one of my top 5 games of all times.

For those who dont know this is effectively sims+state of decay but ultra realistic. The iso view is actually charming, the game is actually horrifying. It taught me that preppers have good reason to prep albeit a zombie apocalypse is not gonna happen.

This game is terrifying and unforgiving, and thats why I love it.

Decided to leave a review after I heard the devs get bashed alot. Game is 13 years old and the indie company is STILL making massive updates and the modding scene is active and massive.

I love this game, this dev team, and can’t wait for whats next.

Anyone who says this isnt GOTY in 10 months is literally smoking meth. what other game inspires such dopamine rushes and such stress all wrapped up into one? Each mission is like a rollercoaster ride that in the end leaves you begging for more.

TL;DR It has great potential but still lacks content comparatively to its predecessor

Before I begin full disclosure, I had over 2,000 hours on Crusader Kings 2 (CK2). This will definitely skew my feelings on this game.

Graphics: this is a vast improvement over CK2, I was initially concerned with seeing barony level holdings and the 3D portraits but after some getting used to the graphics at large are a vast improvement over CK2 including everything from characters, windows, the map, and more. Could use more flavor and character.
Overall 9/10

Audio: I am by no means no expert on game audio, with over 600 hours the music does loop but I would say the tracks are solid. could use more region based music like CK2 and more tracks at large.
Overall 7/10

Gameplay: Gameplay ranges from the more pragmatic side, (diplomacy, warfare, economics) to the role-play side (Events, decisions, activities, ETC)
Warfare is much more satisfying in CK3 than previous games, the knight system and min maxxing accolades, knight effectiveness, retinues and commanders is very satisfying and allows many different strategies. I would say this is a vast overhaul to CK2.
Diplomacy is also much more interesting with the introduction of the lifestyle system, this is about the same as CK2 though overall considering that it functions mostly the same as CK2.
Economics is where I believe that the game could use some improvements, I miss merchant republics and the laws system which allowed for more management as a king or higher with vassals. the introduction of development and the new various holding upgrades is nice but its missing much of CK2's critical developments. Also clans, nomads, feudals, and tribals all feel the same, much more flavor is needed on this front which I think developers are moving towards.
Roleplay is both much more and much less satisfying at the same time in CK3. The stress system is a great addition, providing more incentive towards playing like your character. There are significantly less decisions and events comparatively to CK2 and i miss the absurdity (and that it could be enabled and disabled in the menu). Activities, royal court and struggles help alot but its still missing much flavor. I hope they continue to add more depth and events and consider adding back some more fantastical elements. Secret societies are dearly missed as well. The culture and religion system are fantastic and would greatly benefit from the aforementioned suggestions. I also hope that they re-implement diseases and the black death to help mitigate the super high late game development and purge alot of characters to help with lag.
Overall as of time of writing, 6.5/10

UI and other technical stuff: Overall the UI is aesthetically pleasing but is a bit scattered. It was hard to find menus and they are scattered with every update. I feel this is mitigated with hours in the game so I will not hold it too harshly. Performance in CK3 is much better than its predecessor as well, it still lags in the late game much like any paradox game but its much better than the old game.
Overall 8/10

I hope they continue to develop the game and show it love, In a few years it will vastly outclass CK2 but that will take dedication and hard work from the studio.

Final rating as of time of writing: 8/10

This is one of the most in depth 4X (borderline grand strategy) games I have ever found, and I have fallen in love with it. It is worth every penny. Just dont hop on to the reddit page until you complete at least 1 playthrough

So far the story is underwhelming, rpg aspects are rare (which was the crux of their promise) and your character doesnt feel like yours.

Update: after the bug fixes, the gameplay is much smoother but the previous criticisms remain true. Once i try phantom liberty i will revisit this and share my final thoughts

New to the game. First five minutes and it was already one of the most fun games i own on pc. This game is a masterpeice with definite links to older games like chivalry. 5/5

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This is my first review ever. This game is very fun and does many things right like land purchases, the feel of becoming a great colonial power and the great real time combat. It really feels like a great game even in 2017 4.5/5 stars